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Topic: The American Empire, RIP (Read 460 times)

"When will historians of the future date the beginning of the decline and fall of the American empire?

The question may seem presumptuous. The idea that the American Century is a relic of the past, and we are entering a "new world order" of divided rather than hegemonic power, is relatively new, and still controversial. There are those who insist it ain’t necessarily so, primarily neocons of the second mobilization such as Robert Kagan, who are quick to reassure all right-thinking patriotic Americans that we’re still Number One and warn against the fatal lure of committing "superpower suicide."

To the rest of us, however – that is, to everyone outside the neocons’ cultic universe – the signs of the Great American Contraction are everywhere, most noticeably in the incomes, productivity, and general economic well-being of ordinary Americans. Our own CIA – never a friend to the neocons, but that’s another story – avers this condition is the single greatest threat to our national security: not Iran, not terrorism, but the very real threat of national bankruptcy. Our national debt is over 100 percent of GDP."

I think the countries financial condition is one huge house of cards and neither side is interested in being the bearer of bad news. Both sides, one more than the other, seem to favor the head in the sand approach than being the side that takes action to try and fix things.

The recent report about a negative GDP is one example where the Dem's say the GOP did it and the GOP is saying it is really bad when a good part of then negative was because the Govt spent less than it usually does. A big part was a cut in Defense spending. If you make a big cut into govt spending the GDP is going to go down.

I do not believe that the GOP has the courage to really force the kind of changes that are needed so some day maybe someday soon one of the underpinnings of this country are going to be pulled out and we will be in the middle of a real disaster as everything goes to hell.

If everyone was one the same page we might be able to band together to fix it but I do not think that is what will happen. I think it would be like a ship that hit an iceberg and instead of figuring out how to either patch the hole or get off the boat safely everyone would be arguing about the size of the hole, who screwed up allowing the ship to hit the iceberg and all kinds of things, none of which would be productive to either saving the ship or the people on board. Kind of like that ship in Italy I think where the Captain was the first one off.

I seldom watch O'Reilly but while channel surfing last night I caught Bob Beckel on his show. He said something that rings true. O'Reilly was hitting him with facts and a few figures (on the state of affairs) and Beckel said it didn't matter. O'Reilly laughed and asked how Beckel could say such a thing. Beckel's reply was simple and true. Right now people despise and distrust Republicans. That's a big wall to scale.

I seldom watch O'Reilly but while channel surfing last night I caught Bob Beckel on his show. He said something that rings true. O'Reilly was hitting him with facts and a few figures (on ethe sate of affairs) and Beckel said it didn't matter. O'Reilly laughed and asked how Beckel could say such a thing. Beckel's reply was simple and true. Right now people despise and distrust Republicans. That's a big wall to scale.

I would take umbrage with part of the statement that the CIA was never the friend of Neo-Cons. Maybe, but they damned sure used them to perpetuate its wars.

The closest America ever came to an empire, was the Philippines, and we granted them independence after spending blood and treasure to free them from the Japanese. I'm tired of these left loons and their "empire" crap.

Logged

"LIBERALS: their willful ignorance is rivaled only by their catastrophic stupidity"!

"The average age of empire is some 200 years. Though free men must stand up to the forces of tyranny and the cowards behind despotism, it's interesting to think about that average age of empire. You're going up against the historical record when you surmise that an empire in decline can be resuscitated to its former glory. I'm talking about nations that have morphed into empires here, not exceptional tiny democratic strongholds like Switzerland. It's not impossible to revive liberty, but the odds just aren't with you my friend."